Ann Marie Nash’s pet dog Martha was found in such a terrible state last July that she had to be destroyed

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A qualified vets nurse is facing jail for animal cruelty after her emaciated and dying British Bulldog was discovered lying in a gutter.

Ann Marie Nash’s pet dog Martha was found in such a terrible state last July that she had to be destroyed.

The 38-year-old, from Chester Road, Erdington admitted locking the dog out after leaving a bag of rubbish on her front door step.

Admitting an animal cruelty charge, she told Birmingham Magistrates that she couldn’t even afford to feed herself, and had been forced to rely on food bank handouts.

Nash, who had previously fostered abandoned animals, said she was “extremely remorseful” for what she had done – but blamed depression, a lack of cash and a reliance on food banks to feed herself.

Prosecutor Joe Millington told magistrates that Martha was found lying near a gutter in Erdington last July and was rushed to a vet by a member of the public.

An examination marked her as 1.5 out of 5 on the body mass index chart and found a football-sized blockage of bones in the abdomen and toe nails that were growing into the tissue of her paws.

Ann Marie Nash who dumped her English Bulldog 'Martha' on the street leaving it malnourished with complicated and severe stomach problems

Nothing could be done to save her and Birmingham City Council launched an investigation into how the bulldog got into such an appalling state.

The court was told that Miss Nash, who lives alone, was traced because Martha had been micro chipped and had been taken in by Nash the year before by a charity specialising in re homing British Bulldogs.

Joanne Outhwaite, representing Nash, said she had been caring for the animal properly until she lost her job.

She said Nash had qualified as a vets nurse 14 years ago and added: “Miss Nash is extremely remorseful and will remember what has happened for a long time to come.

“She took the dog on because of her position fostering animals.

“Things started to come to a head when she lost her job and she started suffering from depression. She was forced to rely on food banks, was facing eviction and was struggling to maintain her own health.

“She accepts that she should have sought assistance and she sincerely regrets that she was not in a right frame of mind to do so.

“The animal followed her outside as she was dropping rubbish and she shut the door in the hope that somebody would see her and take her in.”

Magistrates ordered a pre-sentence report and bailed Nash until today. She was also warned that the offence did cross the custody threshold.